


The Amusement Park

by luxshine



Category: NSYNC, Popslash
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-03-21
Updated: 2011-03-21
Packaged: 2017-10-17 04:32:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/172937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/luxshine/pseuds/luxshine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Right after the lawsuit, Pearlman invites *N Sync to a weekend on a tropical island, hoping to mend things. Crossover with Jurassic Park</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Amusement Park

**Author's Note:**

> Well, I wrote this for milosflaca years ago, for her birthday. She loves, loves dinosaurs, and well, I was in a cracky mood. And now, at her insistence, I’ve cleaned up the plot, making it a bit more coherent (Or at least as coherent as it can be, given the premise) and here it is, one more time. If anyone asks, I blame a caffeine overload for this. Many thanks to bellamyrose who made sure this was readable, and to otherdeb whose beta and suggestions were invaluable.

1.

  
Looking back, it hadn’t been a good idea.

Looking back, it would have been better to listen to Theresa.

But hindsight was always 20/20, as *N Sync learned fast.

They had just left Transcon, which was very good for them, but they had good hearts and kindness so they decided to give “Big Lou” one more chance, when he invited them for a special weekend of fun.

As it turned out, it would have been better if they hadn’t.

Even for Lou.

2.

  
“We’re here!” Chris said, almost jumping out of the helicopter onto the ground. Behind him, Joey, Lance, Justin and JC walked down the stairs, visibly less excited.

“And where is here?” Britney looked extremely bored, as she fixed her straw hat in place, waiting for Justin to help her down.

“Somewhere not in the Compound.” Wade said, behind her, putting his dark glasses on. “Which means no rehearsal. Which means I’m glad to be here.”

“Guys! This is fun!” Chris called, looking at his surroundings. “For the whole island is an amusement park! The biggest vacation ever!”

“It’s not a vacation, Kirkpatrick.” Theresa Rourke said. She was almost the last one out of the helicopter, followed only by Lonnie, the guys’ most trustworthy bodyguard. “It’s not even a weekend. So just go, jump into a couple of games, and then we leave. You got shows to do.”

“In a week.” Lance smiled. It was an innocent smile, the smile of someone who hadn’t been corrupted by the world of glamour and stardom. The smile showed his perfect white teeth, and made his clear green eyes shine. “C’mon, Tess. Lighten up.”

But Theresa had seen that smile before, and the Dragon Lady wasn’t moved. “There’s too much to do, Bass. Don’t even make me start. So let’s buy you the tickets or whatever, let Kirkpatrick do his Peter Pan impersonation and get out of here before you all do something that needs four weeks worth of spin doctoring.”

“No tickets needed, Mrs. Rourke!” Lou Pearlman walked towards her, making her cringe. It was hard not to cringe when seeing that mass of fat and sweat walking towards someone, when the heat and stickiness made the white cotton shirt that the man was wearing cling to him, revealing every single crease on his massive body. “Only the best for MY boys!”

“They’re not your boys, Mr. Pearlman.” Theresa answered back, lifting one eyebrow. “At least, not according to the court rule. In fact, if it was up to me, you wouldn’t be here. Or, more precisely, you wouldn’t be allowed within 150 ft. of *N Sync. So don’t push your luck.”

“Tess, Lou, calm down.” Johnny Wright was sweating, but not as much as Pearlman. Maybe it had something to do with his darker complexion, Theresa mused. “What do you mean with no tickets, Lou?”

“He means that the park is open for you.” An elderly voice said behind him, and they all turned around to meet their host. “You’re the only guests so far. The first ones to see it, aside from some workers and myself.”

“Dr. Hammond, I presume.” Lou offered his hand to the old man, who appeared to be a cross between everyone’s grandpa and a madman. At least, he resembled one to Britney, who giggled it to Justin who, in turn, passed the message to everyone else.

“At your service.” The old man bowed, looking incredibly comical to the guys, who were having trouble trying not to laugh.

“What kind of park is this?” Theresa asked again, not looking at her boyish charges. “We didn’t see more than a few trees on the way here.”

“Oh, that’s because the amusement park is not finished yet.” Dr. Hammond said, sighing. “But the main attraction is. I assume Mr. Pearlman has not explained a lot to you, Mrs…”

“Rourke. And with me are Mr. Wright, Mr. Jones, Mr. Robson, Miss Spears, Mr. Timberlake, Mr. Chasez, Mr. Bass, Mr. Fatone and Mr. Kirkpatrick…”

“But you can call me Chris.” Chris interrupted Theresa, offering his hand to Dr. Hammond, oblivious to the glare his PR was sending his way. “What’s the main attraction? It must be something if Lou gave up the money to bring us here.”

“Oh, it’s more than big, Chris, my friend.” Dr. Hammond laughed, and then, dramatically pointed to the white and silver dome behind them. “Let me be the first one to welcome you to Jurassic Park!”

3.

  
Jurassic Park.

A big, glorious name for a big glorious park.

It struck something in the hearts of the boys: something akin to wonder, to awe. Because it sounded like a wonderful, amazing thing and their lives didn’t have many things that could be called wonderful.

 _(It was hard to find something worth wonder when you could buy everything your heart desired.)_

Dr. Hammond explained everything to the group as he led them through the silver dome, showing them the park’s restaurant

 _(Although, there were talks with McDonalds for those who didn’t want a Brontoburger, Hammond had said, laughing)_.

the park’s souvenir store

 _(Where Justin bought an amber necklace for Britney, and Chris got a stuffed dinosaur for Busta to play with.)_.

and the park’s ‘educational ride’

 _(Which they decided to skip completely since only Lance was interested in it)_.

that was just below the ‘heart’ of Jurassic Park, as Hammond explained.

It was 11:00 a.m. when they got in the three electrically powered cars to start the main ride, to see the principal attraction that had Hammond so excited.

An hour later, something went very wrong.

What had gone wrong, they would never know. Those who could have explained it were long gone by the time the storm hit.

The storm, one of those tropical storms that starts in the middle of nowhere and causes enough damage to make insurance companies rich for the next year, caught the island by surprise.

A circuit blew out.

Or maybe a wire was exposed.

Or maybe it was just karma, or causality.

Whatever it was it caused the electrical cars the group was riding to stop dead, right in front of a section of the big, electrified fence inside which they had only seen a lot of trees, and not a lot of movement. Inside of which, a goat tied to a metal rod, peacefully munched the nearby foliage.

Britney turned around in Justin’s arms to tell him something about how boring it all was, when a roaring noise called her attention back to the fence.

The goat was no longer there: the metal rod was bent.

Justin was pale.

“Oh, fuck…” He said, as the quiet hum of the electrified fence suddenly stopped.

It was 12:00 p.m. when the electricity on the island failed.

The middle of the day.

The perfect time to find out that, behind every dream, a nightmare can be found.

4.

  
“Everyone, out of the car!!”

Justin could remember clearly when Hammond yelled that. He could remember clearly grabbing the handle of the electric car that he, Britney, Lance and J.C. were riding in. There was no problem remembering how the cold drops of water felt on his face as he managed to get out through the broken window, or how the dirt tasted when he fell flat on his face before getting up, urged by Wade.

However, he had troubles remembering how they had separated from the others and

 _(And where is Britney? She was standing next to me. Britney was)_

where they were heading to.

Because they were not running towards the road,

 _(The road where the cars were left, where Hammond yelled for us to run, where Theresa)_

they were running forward, to the jungle, trying to lose whatever that was behind them.

 _(The thing. The big thing with teeth. The thing that ate the goat. The thing that ate)_

And his thoughts were jumbled and too fast, and he couldn’t see Britney. They had lost Britney. Britney who was

 _(With Theresa. But don’t think about Theresa. Britney was)_

with Chris. And Joey. He had seen her run towards Joey because Joey was bigger than him, and stronger and he was with JC…

And they were not around.

“We got to get back! Britney is…!” He yelled, but he didn’t stop running. He couldn’t stop running.

“We can’t!” Wade yelled back. Wade, who was in the vanguard of the group, who would face whatever that was in front of them… Wade who

 _(Who had helped me to my feet when I fell. Wade helped. Wade led. Wade had left Britney behind)_

was taking charge now that they were lost in the jungle. “Justin, you saw that thing! If she managed to escape, she’ll find us! But we can’t go back now!!”

“Wade is right, Justin!” Lance, who no longer seemed calm, who was dirty, and wet, and as scared as Justin, agreed. “We have to get as much distance between us and that thing as we can!”

“Don’t worry, kid!” Johnny, the last of the small group, smiled at him, even though he looked tired. “I’m sure she’s all right! I saw her run in the other direction, with Joey!”

“But… But Hammond… And Theresa…?” Justin managed to stutter, trying to ignore the branches hitting his face.

“Don’t think about that, Justin!” Wade chastised. “It’s better not to think about that…”

And he was right.

It was better to forget the scene they had left behind.

5.

  
The only consolation the guys had was that the end had come quickly to Theresa.

At least, they hoped that it had been quick. To think otherwise was to walk on the edge of madness.

When the electric hum had stopped, Chris had seen Theresa turn around and say something to Dr. Hammond. Since they were with Lou in the first car, Chris couldn’t hear what his PR was telling the scientist, but knowing Theresa Rourke, the older *N Syncer knew it wasn’t something nice.

Chris was quite nervous then, mostly because unlike Britney --who was cuddling Justin in the third car, behind them – he had seen clearly what had eaten the goat.

And he really didn’t want to think about that. Because it was tall, and big, had way too many teeth, and by all means, shouldn’t exist. Those things had been extinct for millions of years.

From the relative safety of the second car, the one he shared with Joey, because Joey was always fun to be with, Wade, and Johnny, because someone had to keep control, he saw how Theresa yelled at Hammond and Pearlman, and then, left the electric car slamming the door.

“…and your mechanical toys are not amusing Dr. Hammond. You could cause…”

The wind carried Theresa’s voice towards Chris, as she walked near the electric fence that didn’t hum, and another, louder sound, muted them. It sounded like thunder, which would have been normal in the middle of the storm. But Chris knew it was not thunder.

Deep down, he thought Theresa knew it too.

“What’s that?” Theresa asked, turning in the direction of the sound.

Chris saw, in painful slow motion provided by his mind, as the gigantic Tyrannosaurus Rex that had eaten the goat slammed against the no longer electrified fence, making Theresa jump backwards. And the PR didn’t run. She just stared dumbly at the enormous animal that shouldn’t be there, as it growled, opened it’s jaw and chomped her down, raising its head to swallow her whole.

It was then that Hammond yelled.

It was then that Chris ran, hoping that Theresa died from shock, or surprise, or whatever that was not the teeth of the Tyrannosaurus as it chomped her waist.

6.

  
They had lost the others.

That was all that Chris could think, as he ran as fast as his legs would allow. As he thanked God, all saints, all angels and anyone who would listen for the endless hours of rehearsal that had kept him in shape.

In front of him he could see Joey, carrying Britney. Behind him, he could hear JC.

JC, who was yelling that he didn’t know where Lance was. That he couldn’t see Wade. That he hadn’t seen either Hammond or Lou leave the first car.

And they had been running for what seemed hours, running away from the road, from the enormous animal

 _(That had chomped on Theresa. That had growled and eaten her. That had chomped and munched on her)_

that had turned it’s attention to the other cars. The car where Hammond and Lou still were, when Hammond had yelled.

Chris didn’t want to think about that. Or about the fact that

 _(We’re in the jungle and that animal came out of here. There can be teeth here. Teeth and fangs and blood and we’re lost, and Theresa is dead, and I can’t see Justin and)_

no one knew they were there, and they didn’t know where they were heading. Because the rain was getting worse, and it was hard to see where he was running. It was hard to see because the fat drops of water were falling on his face, and he was crying, and he couldn’t run anymore.

Because he couldn’t tell if the roars he heard behind were thunder, or a signal that the T-rex was still behind them.

7.

  
Lonnie was a professional, and no one could deny it.

He had protested when Hammond and Pearlman assured him that he didn’t need to go on the ride with the group, and had insisted on accompanying them until they had finally accepted. He hardly let them out of his sight, and to let them run wildly in a jungle without him was against all he believed in as a professional bodyguard. He would’ve felt a lot better if the rest of the group had been there, but his negotiating skills hadn’t been that good.

The only reason why he didn’t go out with them had been because the guys had insisted they could go out on the rides without him behind them, so he had stayed, checking their movements in the control room.

When he saw the dead monitors in the control room, he realized he should’ve gone with them.

It was impossible to go out of the control dome, because the storm raged outside. A rescue mission could turn into a disaster with those weather conditions. And the radio was dead.

So all he could do was wait, and hope they were all right.

But as soon as the storm passed the island, Lonnie was going to be out there.

And nothing would stop him from getting the group back safe on his watch.

He heard a crackle, and suddenly, the dome was covered with darkness. Calmly, he sat on the floor and began counting.

If the electricity didn’t start again soon on its own, Lonnie knew where to find a flashlight. When the storm stopped he was going out.

8.

  
No one blamed Wade for what happened.

No one, that is, except Wade.

Even as Justin tried to make him leave the spot where they had seen Johnny Wright for the last time, the younger *N Syncer knew that Wade blamed himself for everything.

“I shouldn’t have let him climb first.” Wade finally said, as he turned his tearful eyes to Justin. “I should’ve…”

“You didn’t force him or anything, Wade… He volunteered…” Justin tried to reason, but Wade shook his head.

“We shouldn’t have climbed.” Wade insisted, letting the tears run wildly down his cheeks. The storm was slowing now, and that was the only consolation they had. It also made things more dangerous, now that they knew that the skies were also filled with nightmares. “We should…”

“How could you know, Wade?” Lance interrupted, and his bass voice sounded weak for the first time since the choreographer had known him. “How could _anyone_ know?! You were just trying to save us for Christ’s sake!”

They had been running away from the Tyrannosaurus when Wade saw the door. It was a big, metal door, and it was open.

Even Johnny had agreed that it seemed like their safest bet. To get something strong between them and the extinct carnivorous beast behind.

Inside, however, it was just like the other side of the metal rods. A dark jungle, where the storm hit their faces, and bodies. The wet shirts clung to their bodies like a second skin, and their hair was plastered against their faces.

“I don’t think that thing can get in…” Johnny had said. Johnny, who despite the odds was confident. “We might be safe…”

“And there might be other things lurking on the ground.” Lance had added. Later, when trying to reason with Wade, Lance would point that out. Because, after all, it actually was his fault that they had been looking for higher ground. “Didn’t Hammond say he had cloned ten or so species?”

“I… I wasn’t paying attention to him…” Justin stammered, looking in the direction of the door. It didn’t take a genius to realize that he was thinking about Britney. That he wanted to go and find her.

“She must be safe, J.” Johnny had placed his hand on Justin’s shoulder. “C’mon. Let’s get away from that door…”

And they had done that, they had walked deeper and deeper into the jungle, as the storm finally seemed to lose its strength, and more new, strange sounds filled the air. Every movement set their hearts on a wild race, every sound was cause of fear.

It had been Wade’s idea to see if they could see the control dome from the top of the trees. And Lance had agreed, thinking it was safer.

Johnny had volunteered to go first, because when he was a kid he had done some palm tree climbing. Wade went behind, ready to cover his back.

And so, only Wade saw what happened.

No matter how many nights passed, Wade would never forget Johnny’s surprised yelp, nor his desperate scream for help. It would be a long time before the nightmares of the great velvet wings that passed over his head, as the mighty pterodactyl carried Johnny’s body away from the tree where they were perched, carrying him away to its nest, wouldn’t come every night to his dreams.

9.

  
By some strange miracle, they managed to lose the T-Rex and find a safe place to wait for the storm to pass.

It had been Joey who saw the cave, and, despite JC’s misgivings, Britney’s fear, and Chris’ doubts, they had taken refuge inside.

Perhaps someone up there decided that they deserved a break, because the cave was empty.

 _(Not that they actually went very far inside it, just stayed in the entrance, waiting for the storm to pass)_

Unfortunately, that also gave them time to think, and realize the kind of situation they were in.

“What do you think happen to Justin?” Britney asked JC, putting her head on his shoulder as they both sat on the cold ground. The air around them smelled like musk, jungle, death, and rain. “You think the Rex…”

“He’s all right, Brit,” JC answered, hugging her. “I’m sure he’s all right.”

 _(But that could be false because we’re lost, they’re lost. There’s a fucking t-rex out there. We’re all alone, and )_

Chris knew JC didn’t want to think, so he turned to look at Joey. Joey had been the rock during their flight, carrying Britney as if he really was Superman. Joey, who had found the cave.

“It’ll be all right, Chris.” Joey said, and somehow, when Joey said it, it was more believable.

“This whole place is a fucking nightmare…” Chris mumbled, leaning into Joey’s arms, watching Britney cry onto JC’s shoulder. He couldn’t get the image of Theresa turning around to face her death out of his mind. Not when he had been happy to be there in the first place, not when he had been the first one to tell her to lighten up.

In the distance, they could hear thunder. Or it could be growling, they didn’t know. It was hard to tell, especially since they were scared.

“We’re all going to die.” Britney sobbed. “That… that thing is going to come and eat us all alive, like it ate Theresa, and I’m sure it ate Lou and Justin…”

“Britney, we don’t know…” JC tried again, but Britney shoved him away, standing to her feet. Outside, the storm had become a mere drizzle, almost like the ones they had all the time back in Orlando.

A lifetime away.

“No, we don’t!” She looked at him, her mascara streaking down her cheeks, making her look tragically comical. “We don’t know anything! But I’m not going to stay here until we find out!”

And with those final words, she stomped out of the cave.

“We have to get her back.” Chris stood, and started to follow. When he realized neither JC nor Joey were behind him, he turned around to look at them. “C’mon! We can’t leave her alone out there! She’s our friend! Just think what would it do to Justin if we lost her!”

 _(Don’t say that Justin might be dead now, don’t say that we could die out there, please just come)_

JC looked at Joey, who sighed. It was obvious that both preferred the relative safety of the cave to whatever dangers were lurking out in the jungle, but neither could actually face the possibility of Brit being hurt, not if they could help it. So, despite their instincts telling them not to, they left the cave, following the path they thought the young woman who was almost a sister to them had followed.

10.

  
The only good thing they had found about the pterodactyls’ cage was that, apparently, there were no other carnivorous dinosaurs in it.

Even so, every sound, every movement, had them jumping out of their skins, trying to lean on each other for support.

The dynamics in the group had changed since Johnny’s disappearance. Wade thought that they could try and find the pterodactyl’s nest, and maybe save Johnny before it was too late. Lance and Justin, however, were convinced that it was a hopeless idea, that their only good bet was to find their way back to the control room.

Even if that meant being out in the open again.

Out where the T-rex and God knew what else was lurking.

“If we stay here, Wade,” Lance reasoned, “No one will ever find us. The cage is too well hidden. We hadn’t even noticed it here until we entered.”

“I can’t leave Johnny, Lance,” Wade insisted, as he broke a twig from a tree. “Not while there’s still a chance that he’s alive.” The choreographer, who was two years younger than Justin, three years younger than Lance, looked up to the sky, barely visible thanks to the high trees and their branches. “But you’re right. If we stay here, our chances are less than nothing.”

“What do we do then?” The blond bass asked, even though he believed he knew the answer. Justin only listened. Deep inside, both Lance and Wade knew that Justin was feeling guilty. Guilty because he wasn’t thinking about Johnny, or even about them. It wasn’t hard to read the young singer’s eyes, and in those blue, tear-filled orbs, the only thing to be found was concern for Britney.

“I think we’re at the edge of the cage,” Wade finally said. They could see the big railings between the trees, the crystal dome that was not fully constructed, that had openings big enough for them “So you try to get back to the main road, and to the control room. I’ll meet you there, hopefully, with Johnny.”

“It’s not raining anymore.” Justin suddenly piped in. He didn’t seem too happy with the plan. “You’ll be an easy target for those winged things.”

It was funny how they couldn’t say the beast’s names. The T-rex was the ‘big’ thing, the pterodactyls were the ‘winged’ things. And all the others were… the other ‘things’. But none of them acknowledged the truth.

Maybe it was because doing so would bring the painful absurd reality of the situation they were in home. As long as they were only ‘things’, they could hope it was all just a bad dream, a dream from which they would soon wake up.

“All right.” Lance agreed, looking straight into Wade’s eyes. He and Wade hadn’t been good friends before. Lance was the clumsy kid in the group, and Wade the merciless choreographer. Funny, how everything changed after a couple hours in the jungle, after seeing your friend and manager being taken away by a monster which, by all laws of nature, had been extinct for more than two million years. But as they stared at each other, all the animosity was lost. All that remained was a lot of things that should have been said, but would remain unsaid. “Take care.”

“I will.” Wade smiled, as he returned to the jungle.

Wade smiled.

But Lance couldn’t shake the dreadful feeling that it would be the last time he would see him.

  
_11._   


  
All JC could think was that it reminded him of the bus.

The tour bus where they lived so much of their lives. The bus that took them safely, from place to place.

When they were on it, and he could hear the steady ticking of Lance typeing contracts, and the beeps and chirps of Chris’ gameboy. Hear Justin hum or beatbox some unknown tune just under his breath, and Joey talking on the phone with the girl of the week. And he would look out of the window, and see the fields, the grass, the landscape.

It was just like that.

Only this grass was almost as tall as he was.

Only this grass was deadly.

In their wild carom through the jungle, under the storm, they had lost the road. And after they left the cave, looking for Britney, they couldn’t find it again.

Instead, they found the grass. Undisturbed grass, where they couldn’t see any movement.

They were on a small hill, still inside the jungle when they found it, and JC didn’t fool himself. It had been that hill that had saved their lives.

Chris was the first one to spot Britney. It wasn’t that he actually saw her, because he had the worst eyesight of the group, but he could see the movement in the tall grass.

“She’s over there!” He had yelled, pointing to a black spot moving through the grass. It was a spot that wasn’t moving very fast, as if she were trying to figure out what direction to follow. “Let’s go!”

“Wait.” Joey stopped him by the shoulders, and pointed to something else in the grass. It was another spot of movement that was going straight to where Britney was. “What’s that?”

“That’s a…” Chris began, squinting to try and see, when JC pointed in other direction.

“There’s another one… And another one farther up…”

Chris paled, and stepped back. Bumping into Joey, he turned around to say something, when a high pitched sound interrupted him.

Britney’s scream coming from the grass.

That was all it took to snap their attention back to the tall, deadly grass. The grass that JC hadn’t stopped staring at. Only now it was not static, or just moving with the breeze. Now it seemed like a boiling cauldron, where black shadows converged in one spot, the spot where they believed Britney to be.

She only screamed once, but her scream never stopped. It was a continuous, terrified scream. A scream that made their hearts stop, and that, even though it only lasted for a few seconds before dying forever, it kept ringing in their ears for hours.

Neither Joey nor JC saw the thing that ate her. The things that hunted her through the grass, where she was alone, confused, and scared.

Ironically, Chris did. Chris managed to make a shape out of the shadows, a tail, a claw. Teeth.

The sight of it had been enough to scare him into silence from that moment on.

At first they didn’t notice the change. As they returned to the jungle, because, in a way it was better to see what was going to eat you and have a chance to run, both JC and Joey were too immersed in their own thoughts to notice Chris’ silence. But when they miraculously found the road, and they congratulated each other, and they jumped with joy and screamed their relief, they finally realized that Chris was not joining in the celebration. He just stared mutely at the wet gravel, at the fallen trees that the T-rex had destroyed in its wake.

They were back where they had started, the three cars still there, mute tributes to the horror.

The first one, where Hammond, Lou and Theresa had been was totally smashed, upside down. The second, where Chris and Joey had been joking just hours earlier, and the third, where Britney and Justin

 _(And who was going to tell Justin that his girlfriend was dinosaur chow now? Who?)_

had been cuddling, seemed fine. Chris didn’t pay attention to them. He started walking towards the crashed one. He was almost there when Joey stopped him, forcing him to meet his gaze.

Joey didn’t like what he saw in his friend’s eyes, but he didn’t comment. He simply thought it was due to shock, and hoped that it could be helped when they were safe. “I’ll see if Lou or Hammond are there… you check the cars with JC, ok? You were always better with the electric stuff than me.”

Chris nodded, but other than that, he didn’t answer. He only gave Joey a weak smile before following his instructions. Joey didn’t move until he saw Chris get inside the third car, with JC checking the engine. Satisfied that both his friends were going to be busy for a while, he turned around and started walking towards the wreck.

“It seems that these things are independent from the main electric power…” JC muttered, checking the engine of the car. Out of the corner of his eye, he was also checking on Chris, who was at the wheel. But Chris didn’t answer, just nodded, and waited for him to move over to turn on the engine, which, thankfully, started immediately, as if it had never been out

 _(Maybe if we hadn’t run, we could have saved Brit…)_

“I can’t see Lou!” Joey yelled at them. “But there’s something inside…”

JC saw how Joey went completely under the trashed car, and was about to comment on his friend’s adventurous spirit when he realized that Chris had tensed visibly. “What’s wrong…?” He started to ask when he realized what Chris was looking at. Justin’s forgotten glass of coke.

The liquid was moving, slowly. As if something had hit the dashboard.

It took JC only a second to realize what it meant, as he looked up just in time to see the gigantic T-rex coming out of the forest again, like a bad movie monster that simply cannot leave the poor, nubile girl alone.

It took less than that for him to realize that Joey would not have time to leave the interior of the trashed car and reach them.

Especially since the Tyrannosaur threw all its weight against the trashed car, trying to break it, trying to get to whatever was inside.

JC was frozen in his place for a second. A second too long, because Chris, silent, shocked and scared, moved.

A loud, unnatural sound called the T-rex’s attention away from the car and to them. Chris was sounding the horn loudly, angrily, trying any means necessary to get the monster away from the car, that wasn’t resembling a car as much as a heap of junk anymore, and focused on them.

Which, from JC’s point of view, wasn’t a good plan.

But Chris seemed glued to the horn, determined not to lose another friend, so JC knew he couldn’t count on his older friend to remain focused on surviving, so using all his strength

 _(You’re skinny, you’re never going to beat me JC, even Lance, who looks like a girl, can beat you up)_

he managed to push Chris aside and get in behind the wheel.

And the engine protested, as he rammed the accelerator, hit reverse and drove the car backwards, trying not to look in front of him, trying not to see the moving jaws that looked bigger every second, trying not to smell its breath, which was cold, moist, and smelled like blood and rotten meat

 _(And, isn’t that Chanel #5? Theresa’s favorite? Or are you’re going insane? Is it? Is it?)_

and things JC didn’t want to identify. Trying not to see the crashed car inside which nothing moved. Only caring about not crashing, about getting Chris out of there and alive

 _(iIronic, isn’t it? Lance broke the car, everyone made fun of my driving, but now I’m the one who can save your life, Chris. So who’s the bad driver now?)_

about managing to get back to Orlando in one piece.

And in front of him, the T-rex was losing ground, and it seemed that finally, someone had decided to give him a chance.

12

  
When Lou first told them that they were hiring bodyguards, Chris had laughed.

Back then, *N sync wasn’t big, was barely known locally, much less around the world. Chris didn’t see the need to hire bodyguards.

And so, despite having celebrated his 25th birthday the week before Lonnie, Dre and Randy were hired, he had behaved in his worst Dennis the Menace manner, trying to make them feel as unwelcome as he could.

Lonnie hadn’t fallen for that.

In fact, when others avoided Chris like the plague, Lonnie was always behind him.

Lonnie had been the one who got him away from a mob of fans in Germany, when the girls almost trampled him. Lonnie had been the one who went and looked for him in a club, and never told Lou Chris had broken curfew. Lonnie had been the one who first commented how they should have more than what they had in their bank. Lonnie had been the one who stayed with them, even after being threatened by Transcon.

So it was a cruel twist of fate that Chris was the one who found Lonnie’s body, bloodied and mangled, his big hand

 _(And how many times he saved you; how many times those hands held you, and protected you, and…)_

still holding the lever of the main power grid.

13.

  
JC’s driving had saved their lives.

Chris never, ever thought that he would think those words. JC would never have believed that he would say those words. But somehow, driving the electric car backwards while escaping from a hungry T-rex, JC had managed to reach the control room dome.

Safety.

Almost at the same time that Justin and Lance arrived, because Lance had found a jeep, probably a possession from a veterinary or a crew member of the nightmarish park, and drove until he saw the jungle die.

One look at JC, and Justin knew that he shouldn’t ask about Britney. That it was better if he just kept his memories intact. One look at JC, at Chris, and Lance knew that it was better not to ask about Joey.

For the first time ever, Lance was afraid of knowing.

Lonnie was there, waiting for them. And even though some might have thought it unmanly, or unprofessional, the big black man had hugged his boys. And cried because they were safe, and cried for those who hadn’t managed to come back.

If pressed, Lance would admit that he had even cried for Lou. Because, whatever else he had done, Lou had given them their first chance.

Chris didn’t say a thing. He just hugged Justin as if the young singer was his lifeline, and cried. Justin let him, and cried too. For Johnny, for Wade, for Joey…

For Britney.

As always, thinking of the safety of the group, Lonnie led them to the kitchen. It was almost sad to see that the control room was mostly untouched. The nightmare of the park hadn’t reached that place yet. There, he prepared them a couple of burgers, which were eaten in silence. Gas was still on, and it wouldn’t be until night when things got bad.

They had three hours.

“Without the electric fences, those animals can get here,” Lonnie finally said, after Lance and JC had finished their mutual stories. “Someone has to get out there and turn the damn power on.”

The guys opened their mouths to protest, except for Chris who still looked lost and lonely, but Lonnie shushed them with his big hands. “My job is to take care of you. So stay here. I’ll be back soon and then we leave this damned place.”

Those were the last words they heard Lonnie say.

14.

  
JC didn’t want to leave Chris, and Lance and Justin respected it. It wasn’t as if they could do anything about it, even though Justin had bitched about him having it as rough as Chris had. But Justin was still more or less functioning, while Chris… Chris had simply shut down.

So JC took Chris to the souvenir store, trying to bring a smile to his face. But Chris had only stared at one of the plush t-rexs and started crying again. When JC had tried to drag him away, Chris shook him off and went to grab the biggest plush he found, hugging it while crying.

Never slow to take hints, JC had left Chris alone, despite his own desires and fears.

The dome was a big place, and it was SAFE. Hammond

 _(Hammond, who had been with Theresa, who had been eaten and crushed like Joey and Britney and…)_

had explained to them that there was no way a dinosaur could escape into the Compound.

 _(But Hammond had also said that the park was safe, and where is Hammond now?)_

“I’m not going to think about that now.” JC said, to no one in particular. The voice in his head, a voice he usually welcomed when it wasn’t rhyming ‘ride’ with ‘inside’, had taken a rather nasty turn toward the sarcastic side of the Force. It wasn’t something he cared much for, especially now that he had lost so many friends.

On the other side of the compound, opposite to where Chris cried, there was a big mural, with dinosaurs painted on it. But JC didn’t want to see another dinosaur for as long as he lived, so he kept walking, past the mural, past the restaurant, and into the kitchen. But the kitchen evoked thoughts of food

 _(Of Theresa getting chomped, Britney’s screams)_

and suddenly, JC didn’t feel so comfortable in the kitchen.

It was then that he found the door to the ‘educational’ ride.

The ride they all had decided to skip, in favor of going out to see the dinosaurs.

“Maybe there’s some useful info here…” JC mused out loud, not trusting his own thoughts. With almost surprising ease, he managed to open the door to the ride and went in. The lights were out, of course, so he knew that Lonnie still hadn’t managed to get the power back on, but JC could make it through most of the rooms and aisles without tripping.

The first stop was a movie theater that was useless now. Then, the ride moved into a strange aisle with windows, where models of dinosaurs could be seen.

“Great.” JC groaned, and kept walking. The scale Tyrannosaur wasn’t as scary as the real one, but even so made him shudder. There were pterodactyls, and brontosaurs and brachiosaurs, and some other ‘saurs that JC didn’t immediately recognize, but knew were out there, waiting, hunting.

Squinting, he could read some of the names, but none of them were of much interest.

“Who needs to know the name of what’s going to eat you, right?” He asked to one of the models, a slim, black and red lizard with a long snout and yellow eyes, not much taller than JC himself, with a long, black claw in the center of its paws.

The thing’s eye blinked.

JC ran.

15.

  
It had been his fault, and Chris knew it. He shouldn’t have sent JC away, he shouldn’t have been immersed in his world of grief.

He was the oldest, he should have paid attention.

Still looking at Lonnie’s arm, Chris didn’t know what to do. His bodyguard, his friend, was dead. The creator of the nightmarish place was dead. Wade, Britney, Johnny, JC, Justin, Lance… Joey…

All of them were gone.

And if they hadn’t survived, why should Chris?

What was stopping him from just sitting there, and waiting for the thing that had eaten Lonnie to come back for dessert?

16.

  
It had been Lance who had noticed JC was missing.

It had been Lance who had decided they had to find their friend.

“We’ve already lost too many,” he had said. “I’m not going to stand still while we lose JC.”

“But… what about Lonnie? What if he returns and he doesn’t find us here?” Justin had protested, looking at them with lost, blue eyes. “What if…”

“I don’t care if you’re not coming, J. I’m not leaving C here,” Lance insisted. And Chris knew, even from behind his wall of pain, behind the image of Britney being hunted by red and black lizards, that Lance was not joking.

Justin didn’t.

And so, they left their lead singer, the youngest of them all, to wait for them and for Lonnie in the center of the Compound while they searched for JC.

 

17.

  
Chris didn’t believe JC was outside the compound. He **needed** to believe JC was inside, because inside was safe.

Still, the big gaping hole in one of the farthest walls of the compound said otherwise.

Something had got in.

Or someone had got out.

Whatever the case, it meant that they had to go out again. A perspective that Chris didn’t like much.

“See that big block of concrete up there?” Lance pointed out, and Chris nodded, making the gray block not more than a mile away. “That’s the main power grid. If JC went out, I bet that’s where he’s going.”

Because Lonnie is there, Chris thought, and nodded again. It was a mile into the jungle, but he didn’t hear weird noises, and the trees weren’t that high. There were no t-rexes around.

He only hoped that there were no red and black lizards either.

Only one mile. They could run it fast. They were in shape thanks to Wade

 _(And don’t even think that you used to complain about his rehearsals, not when he might be dead or chomped or )_

who was pretty much merciless regarding that.

One mile.

Lance grabbed Chris’ hand, and gave it a strong squeeze, nodding and smiling. Chris did the same. Whatever happened, they were going to stay near each other.

Letting go of Lance’s hand, he started running, followed by Lance, still fueled by that hopeful smile.

He didn’t stop until he reached the door of the concrete building, when he noticed that Lance was no longer behind him.

18.

  
If Lance had been with him, Chris mused, he wouldn’t give up.

If Joey had been in his place, alone and knowing that everyone was dead, even so, Joey wouldn’t give up.

Chris knew that, but still, it was hard to stand up.

Lonnie’s hand was on the Power Grid. Whatever had killed him, had killed him **after** Lonnie had returned power to the compound, perhaps just minutes before Chris arrived.

Maybe his killer was still around.

But no dinosaur had appeared in the long minutes while Chris silently cried, and Chris had closed the door of the building before coming in.

Which meant he was alone with his bodyguard’s body.

His bodyguard, who had risked his life, who had lost his life to save him and the others.

And Justin was still out in the compound, waiting for Chris

 _(And Lance, and JC)_

to return.

Chris owed them, he couldn’t just let himself be eaten. He had to fight.

Just like his friends had fought.

19.

  
It was a flamethrower.

Just a flamethrower, probably used to control the vegetation a little. But for Chris, it was the key to survival.

The other things had teeth. But now Chris Kirkpatrick was armed.

He didn’t fool himself; it would do no good against something as big as the fucking T-rex, but if something smaller tried to get a bite out of him, Chris was going to fry the thing.

Carefully, listening for any sound, Chris had started to search the power grid plant. He had found a damaged panel, and a couple of doors that were scratched open. But no dinosaurs. He felt a little like the main character in a Resident Evil game, walking through empty aisles with no defined destiny.

Only he had one. He was going to get every single weapon he could find in the building, and then go out to the jungle. He was going to go back to Justin, and then, they were going to get out of that forsaken island, one way or another.

Even if he had to burn the damn thing down to do it, he was going to get out alive. And he prayed that he was not going to get out alone.

20.

  
The thing had red, black and golden scales. It was almost two heads bigger than Chris, and its yellow eyes peered at the singer with almost intelligent hunger.

Chris froze, as the thing started walking towards him, clicking its long, black claw in the ground. Even though he had the flame thrower in his hand

 _(And, he had told Joey a lifetime ago, doesn’t the very existence of flame-throwers mean that somewhere, someone said ‘I wish I could burn that guy to death but I can’t reach him?’ and Joey had laughed)_

Chris couldn’t move. The thing had him frozen.

Because even though Chris didn’t know what the thing’s name was, he knew exactly what the thing could do.

He had seen it, and another two of its kind, tear Britney apart.

Hunt her, bring her down, kill her.

The thing stepped forward, as amused as a cat playing with a mouse.

Chris managed to step back, just an inch, and the thing didn’t move any faster. It was amused. And Chris knew it. He had seen Busta hunt shoelaces pretty much in the same way. Only he wasn’t a shoelace, and the thing was no Busta.

The awful dance of death was prolonged for a long minute, as the thing only moved forward when Chris moved back. Until Chris’ back hit a tree, a big tree he hadn’t seen before, and the thing got ready to jump.

Chris closed his eyes, asking for his friends to forgive him for his cowardice.

He heard a thud, a yip, and then, nothing.

Afraid to look, afraid to move, he opened one of his eyes, almost blinking.

To see the grinning, dirty face of JC in front of him.

21.

  
JC was, by far, the fastest of the group. Between the fact that he seemed to be unable to gain weight no matter what, and the constant exercise, JC could hold his own in a race and keep running if it was needed.

Still, he had known he was no match for the fast lizard that chased him. He had managed to stay alive because he was lucky. Because the glass that kept the exhibition safe from the public wandering hands was a lot thicker than a normal window, and the dinosaur hadn’t been able to break it on its first attempt.

Or the second, or the third.

It had been a scary race, and for a moment, both JC and the thing were head to head, JC on the ride track, the dinosaur in the exhibit. Then JC had seen the emergency door, and paled. Because the door was open, and the dinosaur could fit through it. So he had run in the opposite direction, hoping that the dinosaur would fall for it.

It hadn’t. The dinosaur kept running until it found the door, and crossed it, and there was nothing but air between it and JC.

JC ran, sure that it was the end, but not willing to recognize it by simply stopping. He went into the theater, and, in a desperate move, he grabbed one of the theater’s chairs and threw it against the screen.

His desperate attempt worked, because behind the screen was a lab. And the lab had doors. Doors that could hold the thing that was on his heels for a minute or two.

So JC had run. He had run like hell, trying to avoid tables and windows, closing every door he crossed, fully aware that death was running close behind him.

Somehow, one of those doors led outside. Outside, where the only thing left to protect him was the fence that, before the storm, before the nightmare, had held the lizards away.

So he climbed, and jumped back into Jurassic Park.

The dinosaur was behind him, and it didn’t hesitate. It threw all his weight against the fence, its claws ready to tear it down.

It was then when JC knew that God existed.

Because suddenly, between biting and tearing the fence, the thing shrieked in pain. It tried to move, and started to smoke. JC’s eyes were glued to the grim spectacle, unable not to look. It was impossible not to see at how the dinosaur died at the hands of human invention. And even though JC hated to see things die, he couldn’t help but feel relieved.

When it was over, he slid down to the ground, still looking at the charred body of the dinosaur and cried.

22.

  
JC finished his story, ending with him hearing noises, climbing up a tree and attacking the raptor chasing Chris with the only thing at hand, stones and sticks, making as much noise as he could. It was not a very good solution, since even though the dinosaur had ran away JC knew it had only gone to get reinforcement.

Chris cried a little more, hugging his younger friend as if he were his lifeline, and they decided to go back to the compound. Chris still didn’t talk, but even so JC managed to understand that Chris had been alone, thinking the worst.

The half a mile back through the jungle was not an easy walk. Both of them were jumpy, and JC was hurt in more than one place. He wasn’t bleeding much, but it was more than enough to make him want to go back to the compound as soon as possible.

It wasn’t that they felt safer there, not when they knew that the compound had been breached by at least one dinosaur, but Justin was there, and it was man’s territory. It wasn’t an unknown jungle, where everything was against them.

It was as close to being on their turf as they could get at the moment.

23.

  
“I want to wake up...” JC moaned, sliding down the wall of the compound, his dirty face trailed with tears.

He was alone. In the half a mile that they had to cross to get back, he had lost Chris. He had been so worried about Lance, and Justin, that he hadn’t noticed when Chris had separated from him.

He hadn’t realized that his now too quiet friend wasn’t next to him until he found Justin.

What was left of Justin.

Justin’s curls, that had been more than once the target of many jokes, were stained with blood and some purplish substance. And his face was covered with it too, so JC couldn’t see Justin’s eyes.

 _(Blue eyes. The ones you said were the main appeal for his success at MMC, isn’t that ironic?)_

And below the neck, there was not much left of Justin. His best friend.

 _(Didn’t you used to call him brother? Wasn’t he your little brother?)_

Arming himself with courage, he had gone to the kitchen, grabbed a mantel piece and covered Justin’s body with it.

Then, he returned to the souvenir store, to cry.

24.

  
Chris hadn’t meant to leave JC. He hadn’t meant to get distracted. But he had seen Lance’s cross, hanging from a branch, and he couldn’t not go and see.

If Lance was dead, Chris wanted to know. If Lance was alive, and needed help, Chris would never forgive himself for not checking.

He had followed the trail of broken branches and crushed leaves, fearing the worst.

Even so, he had been startled by the sight that greeted him.

Lance was perched on a big stone, about a foot or two in height, using a branch to try and keep what seemed like a thousand small dinosaurs away. He was half sitting, and even from where Chris was standing he could see a bright red gash on Lance’s right leg.

Not giving himself much time to think, Chris pointed the flame thrower against the swarm of small critters, hoping that fire would be enough, that he wouldn’t call any other big things with it, and fired.

His aim wasn’t very good, he just managed to set the grass on fire, but the small critters, that moved like prehistoric chickens, didn’t like it that much and started to move away. His second attempt was better, and he torched at least three things, sending all of the others away.

Lance looked at him, and, strangely, started laughing.

Chris smiled weakly. It was good to know that someone was still finding reasons to laugh in that forsaken place.

25.

  
Lance had tripped.

He had always been a bit of a klutz. He knew it, the others knew it, and Wade seemed to revel in telling him so constantly.

He had tripped trying to follow Chris’ nimble race through the jungle, and had twisted his ankle. But he hadn’t’ yelled, because he knew that with a twisted ankle he was more of a liability than of a friend.

He had managed to remain calm for a long while, he had even managed to get to his feet and try to walk back to the compound.

Until the iguana-like dinosaur appeared.

It was cute, in a lizard kind of way. Green and yellow and with a strange neckflap that looked like a folded umbrella on his neck.

But Lance had learned, like every boyband member in the world had, that the cute ones were the most dangerous. It was true with fans, it was true with dinosaurs.

So he tried to get away from its curious inquiring gaze, and tripped again. Only thanks to Wade he had learned to get up fast after falling down and that had saved him from the purple spit the thing send his way.

Desperate, Lance grabbed the first thing he could to defend himself. A big rock.

He threw it at the lizard, which had puffed its foreskin and now did looked like a walking umbrella, hitting it right between the eyes.

The thing didn’t like the attack, and he threw itself against Lance, biting his leg. Lance hit it, with his fist, with rocks, and finally, he couldn’t think of anything else to use to save his life and grabbed his cross, the silver cross his mom had gave him when he joined *N sync and stabbed the thing’s eye with it until it died.

But with a bleeding leg, he knew he was easy prey.

And that’s the reason why he started to limp quickly, as fast as he could, when the first chicken-like dinosaur appeared. With a lot of pain, he managed to climb up the rock, and grab a big branch to try and get the swarm of little green things away.

And he started praying for a miracle.

A miracle that arrived in the shape of Christopher Alan Kirkpatrick.

26.

  
“Justin! JC!!” Lance yelled into the empty compound, still leaning on Chris. It was almost night, and, even now that the lights were on, and the hallways were illuminated, both knew that if they didn’t manage to get off of the island before it was dark, they would never escape.

Both of them were dirty, bloody and tired, but that didn’t stop them from running to JC’s arms when he appeared. JC ran too, and hugged them for what seemed an eternity, all of them sobbing and crying each other names.

Lance asked about Justin, and JC only sobbed a little more, and Chris hugged them a little harder.

They were together, and they were alive, even though they were the only ones.

“All right…” JC said, once they were back together in the kitchen, high on a bunch of tables joined together to form a sort of fortress. “We know that those things can’t swim, right?”

“We hope that those things can’t swim,” Lance corrected and sighed. “But yeah.”

“So, that’s our ticket out. We just have to get to the coast, and get the hell out of here in one of the boats we saw,” JC said, grinning. “Sooner or later someone will pick us up.”

Chris nodded, silently. That made Lance and JC exchange worried glances, and, after a while, the bass singer spoke up again. “We know there are pterodactyls here too. So we have to stay low and not make much noise. I don’t think they can get out of the cage where… you guys know. But it’s good to be on our guard.”

“Then there’s the T-rex. And the clawed ones. Those are the most dangerous,” JC agreed, while Chris shuddered. “Am I missing some?”

“The umbrella ones. Those spit purple goo.” Lance looked at the other end of the kitchen, the door to the dinning room, where he knew Justin lay under a mantel piece. “And the small ones. Those don’t attack you unless you’re bleeding.”

JC seemed to consider this, looking at Lance’s bandaged leg, before sighing. “Very well. We have to try it now. If we do take more time, we will lose our only chance. You guys ready?”

Lance and Chris nodded.

But JC had the sickening feeling that Chris wasn’t at all ready or happy with the plan.

27.

  
 _They are all dead. I saw Theresa get chomped by a Tyrannosaur, and I’m pretty sure Hammond and Lou didn’t get out of the van. Wade saw Johnny get kidnapped by a pterodactyl, and Lance saw Wade stay. Wade stayed. He chose to stay and find Johnny. But it’s been hours, and Wade hasn’t arrived here, so we know he won’t return. I… I don’t want to think about Britney. Not about how she ended up. I want to remember her as she was. Lonnie… He tried to save our lives. He was safe, and he could have survived… But he tried to save us… And Justin… Justin was only scared. Why did we leave him alone? Why couldn’t we stay at his side?! I hope he’s with Britney now. I hope he didn’t suffer. I couldn’t see his body. Lance did, and JC did because he was the one who found him. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t go and see another of my friends dead. I’m sorry Joey… I couldn’t save you. I couldn’t even turn around to see if you had managed to get out of the car, or if you had… I don’t want to believe you’re dead. But I can’t fool myself into thinking you’re alive. I promise you, I’ll get out of here. And I’ll take care of your brother. And your family. I’ll tell them how brave you were. How you were our Superman, even though it cost you your life. I’m going to miss you, Joe. You will always be my Superman._

28.

  
The coast wasn’t that far. And it was a clear way down. No trees, no bushes. Everything was cut clean. No hidden predators, no last minute traps.

But as the Murphy’s Law says, if something can go wrong, it will. And at the worst possible moment.

They knew it the second they heard the clicking sounds rapping against the concrete.

Chris stopped them, grabbing their sleeves. It was a goddamn miracle that JC and Lance didn’t fall, and they all turned around.

Two slender, clawed dinosaurs were in front of the main door of the complex they had just left.

Between them and the lizards, there were only a handful of feet, almost half of the distance between them and the boat that was probably used for recreational rides around the island.

No place to hide, no place to run.

And the two dinosaurs knew it.

They started to run.

29

  
The dinosaurs stopped short, suddenly, and lifted their heads.

JC, Chris and Lance heard the roaring sound too.

It was a warning that only gave them a second before something crashed against the big gates of the park, the gates they had crossed less than 7 hours before, and they opened to let in a jeep, followed closely by an angry T-Rex.

Too closely.

The jeep zigzagged between the two startled lizards, and stopped right between them and the shocked survivors.

They were even more shocked when they could finally recognize the driver and his passenger.

Wade and Joey.

Dirty, bloody and smelling awful, but alive.

“JOEY!!” Chris yelled, and jumped to hug his friend, who winced visibly. It was only then when JC noticed that Joey’s left leg was stiff, wrapped with what seemed to be the remains of Wade’s jacket.

“Wade, I…” Lance started to say, but Wade shook his head, pointed to the angry T-rex that squared its territory against the two other dinosaurs and muttered one word.

“RUN!”

30.

  
Wade had done some rock climbing when he was 10, before fully dedicating himself to choreography.

That had been the only thing that saved him from the angry pterodactyls which had tried to get a second tasty treat for themselves after pinning Johnny.

There were only two pterodactyls on the island, Wade discovered, but those were more than enough for his taste. If he had learned anything about his nightmarish stay on Jurassic Park, it was that he hated pterodactyls.

After leaving Lance and Justin, he had managed to find the pterodactyls’ nest, on a cliff, across a river. Humming the theme for ‘Jaws’, surprising himself for having some humor left despite the odds, he had crossed the river and started climbing the rocks.

 _(Because, even if he fell, he’d rather die from the fall, than die as a pterodactyl food, or so he repeated to himself as he went higher and higher)_

A couple of feet over the top, he had found metal stairs, probably used by the scientists to check on their little monsters. The stairs led him almost to the top of the hill, where he could see the nest clearly.

What he saw there, made him throw up.

Not because of Johnny’s headless body, although that had much to do with his stomach lurching.

Because of the eggs.

There were eggs in the nest.

 _(And eggs mean baby pterodactyls, and baby pterodactyls mean more eggs and more eggs…)_

That had distracted him enough not to notice the big, vulture-like pterodactyl landing just a couple of feet away, walking towards him until it was almost too late.

He had jumped, only to fall into a river, a few feet lower. The pterodactyl and its mate flew in circles above it but since they were not birds, and basically just dived around, they couldn’t reach him. The wind wasn’t strong enough to let them catch him.

That’s how Wade escaped, diving into the water and going under the river as far as his lungs allowed.

Practically outside the cage, he found the main road, and started following it, paying attention to all the sounds around him. It had been then that he found the remains of the tour buses, and, inside one, miraculously alive but with a broken leg.

With what little was left of Joey’s jacket and the bus, Wade had managed to set Joey’s leg hoping to relieve some of the pain. Afterwards they had decided to risk it away from the road, sure that the T-rex was lurking near.

When they had rolled down the hill and into the park, they had fell right into a big puddle of T-rex’ excrement.

 _(Later, when they finally could talk about it, Joey said that it had felt a lot like nickelodeon’s green goo, but at the moment it had only been disgusting and repulsive)_

Fearing an infection, Wade had pulled Joey out, and forced him to limp to a clearing. A short cut of sorts.

It had been then that they discovered their fall had been a blessing in disguise.

Due to the smell, the other dinosaurs, carnivorous and herbivorous, left them mostly alone.

 _(Except for the smallest, the chicken like ones; they followed Joey from a distance like a herd. Wade called them Joey’s fan club, and as long as they didn’t try to eat them, it was all right)_

Near where the smell caused a triceratops stampede, they found an abandoned jeep. Not wanting to know what had happened to the jeep’s owners, they had jumped in, and started driving to where they thought the complex was.

It had been then that the blessing turned into a curse, because the T-Rex started following them, enraged or maybe, just lonely.

Whatever it was, neither Wade nor Joey wanted to stop to ask him.

31.

  
It was a sight to commit to memory.

The duel of titans. The mighty Tyrannosaur versus two pissed clawed dinosaurs.

None of them wanted to stick around to see who won the fight. Wade helped Lance to run, while JC and Chris half–carried Joey the remaining feet to the port and into the boat.

In minutes, they were out in the bay, heading towards the open ocean.

They didn’t know where they were heading, since none of them had even a passing knowledge of how to pilot a boat, or how to read a nautical map, but they all knew one thing.

They were alive.

And they were going home.

  
**Epilogue.**   


  
Carson Daily fixed his microphone for the last time before going on the air. It was not everyday he got the chance to introduce the biggest pop group of the moment, especially since the guys were as reclusive as the most alternative rock band in the planet.

Oh, they did concerts, which were always sold out. But they hardly gave any interviews, and were never seen out in public if it wasn’t for a concert, especially since the tragic loss of their first and second manager, their lead singer and his girlfriend, and their public relations agent.

Which reminded him not to touch those names, or the tender subject of the shipwreck that had left the surviving members of the group stranded on a boat for two weeks before being rescued by the Costa Rican government. Or the legal problems they had with Ingen Inc. due to some strange misunderstanding. Or why they had chosen not to sign with either Transcon or Jive again, and instead got signed as Freelance’s first pop act –Freelance was, fortunately, a safe subject, since it was Lance’s company. Or why Wade Robson, choreographer, and Lance took charge of practically every decision regarding the group. Curiously, he was allowed to ask about the rumors about Joey and Chris’ relationship.

Only he didn’t want to do that. Practically every reporter who did ended up being the laughing stock of the media world for weeks. Chris’ answers could make anyone go insane, and end up denying his own words.

If he fucked that up, *N Sync would never return to TRL, so he had to play it smooth.

The lights were turned on, and he found himself face to face with thousands of giggling teenagers, all of them waiting for his next words.

“Hey, everyone! I’m sure you’re all here waiting for the World Premiere of *N Sync latest single: It’s Gonna Be Me! So let me introduce these very special friends of ours. Give a big applause for the world’ biggest pop group: Lance Bass, Chris Kirkpatrick, Joey Fatone, and JC Chasez. Let’s welcome *N Sync!”

**Author's Note:**

> The names of the people who died? Were picked out of a hat.


End file.
